Canadian Who's Who 1997

John D. Blackwell is Reference Librarian/Collections Coordinator of the
Goldfarb Library at Brandeis University in Massachusetts.

The 1997 print edition of Canadian Who’s Who (CWW), which first
appeared in 1910, contains more than 15,000 biographical entries. They
provide detailed, current information about prominent Canadians in all
fields of endeavor (although phone/fax numbers and e-mail addresses are
still omitted). No fee or obligation is levied for inclusion in this
dictionary: “Biographees are chosen on merit alone.”

The new CD-ROM edition offers researchers and biographical enthusiasts
increased access to this extensive database on contemporary Canadians.
It is now possible to do keyword searches on the full text, or search by
surname, given name, occupation, position/title, birth (day, year, or
place), creative works, recreations, clubs, or address (all fields,
city, region or postal code). It is also possible to conduct complex
Boolean searches of combinations of the above fields. Searches can be
refined to achieve more focused results, and search terms are
automatically highlighted in retrieved documents. Users can even
bookmark frequently consulted biographies, add annotations, and create
custom lists of selected biographies. Finally, search results can be
printed directly or exported to word processors. The highly
sophisticated search engine permits enormous possibilities for creative
use of this material.

Perhaps the most pleasing aspect of this excellent new CD-ROM
publication is the fact that it is highly intuitive and user-friendly.
Should one need further assistance, there is detailed on-line help
(although it is rather poorly identified by a single question mark,
rather than the word Help!) and a brief printed help sheet; there is
also a toll-free help line.

The appearance of this CD-ROM edition reinforces CWW’s position as
the leading annual register of Canadian achievement.